The Expanding Reach of Print Personalization (piworld.com)

Reinvigorating a decades-old plush toy brand. In a mass-produced world where words like quality, creativity and authenticity are little more than unsubstantiated marketing-speak, Mary Meyer is the real deal. A family-owned company with a storied 85-year history of making soft and cuddly stuffed toys for gift-givers who know and appreciate quality and want to give something truly memorable that will be loved by that special someone. But the look of this storied brand needed an update to bring it forward in time, and make it more appealing to new parents and gift-giving grandparents. It was time for a refresh. That’s where J.Schmid came in. Read the Case Study at: https://www.jschmid.com/blog/portfolio/mary-meyer/

In a world in which digital marketing continues to grow, a new brand is still mailing a catalog for the first time every month. That’s not the strange part, however. What is strange is WHO is mailing these catalogs: e-commerce retailers. Amazon, Wayfair, One King’s Lane and Everlane are just a few examples of formerly online-only brands that took the leap into the catalog sphere. Ironically, one such catalog I received in the mail is called “OnlineShoes.com”! Furthermore, brands which have traditionally sold through brick-and-mortar stores are increasingly adding catalogs to drive traffic to both their website and stores. In many cases, these brands have discovered that by adding a catalog to the marketing mix, customer value increases fourfold! According to the Direct Marketing Association, close to 90 million Americans currently purchase from a catalog. Interestingly, nearly 60 percent of them are women. So why do catalogs still work in a digital world? Check out our recent blog to learn more at: https://www.jschmid.com/blog/designed-for-growth-the-catalogs-resurgence/

It occurred to me the other day while I was noodling email subject lines (trying to eke out another 1 or 2% increase in open rate) that even if I was successful, it would only lead to a fraction of a percent of click-through improvement. We tend to call email marketing “consumer direct,” but really, it’s “inbox direct.” This is no joke: I have 42,933 unopened emails in my Gmail inbox. Promotional emails have become invisible. As marketers, we try to get our emails noticed by using emojis in subject lines, or we drive curiosity with verbiage like, “You won’t believe this!” (urgency); “Only hours left!” (exclusivity); “For our best customers” (value); “FREE!!” … and the list goes on and on, like a barker on the midway. Sometimes we get results from barking, but results are more likely due to timing rather than “clever” subject lines. So, how do we drive consideration (and business) beyond natural demand? read more at: https://www.jschmid.com/blog/100-open-rate-guaranteed/